Curt Smith: Yogi Berra - baseball’s extraordinary Ordinary Man

Monday

Yogi Berra is one of his position's best players, and one of baseball's best ambassadors.

With certain people — Leno, Letterman — only the surname counts. Others flaunt first name or initial: Manny, W. Some become a compound: The empty J-Lo, psychotic A-Rod. No name is like The Yog’s.

James Agee wrote, “Let us now praise famous men.” Folklore’s man is Lawrence Peter (Yogi) Berra, 83. As a new Yankee Stadium opens, Yogi’s shadow swells. What he said, we say of him: “You can observe a lot by watching.”

As Allen Barra notes in his new book, “Yogi Berra: Eternal Yankee,” baseball’s Mr. Malaprop’s is a magically American tale. Born to Italian immigrants, Berra grew up on St. Louis’ “Dago Hill.”

One day the squat, jug-eared teen and a friend saw a theater travelogue about India. The film included a yogi, likened to Berra by his pal. Like gold, the nickname stuck.

Yogi learned a salute to the flag, catch in the throat, tear in the eye Americanism. Best friend Joe Garagiola lived “a pickoff away” on the Hill. One morning Berra took ill. “You look terrible,” said Garagiola. “Why don’t you go home?”

“If a guy can’t get sick on a cold, miserable day like this, he ain’t healthy,” Yogi said.

Try converting that for Mom. Ultimately, such logic endeared him to public speakers, George H.W. Bush telling me, “I’d rather quote Yogi than Thomas Jefferson!” Later I learned he knew more Berraisms than I did. “English is my second language,” Bush said. Yogi’s still chimes.

“When you come to a fork in the road, take it.” “It’s dangerous to make predictions — especially about the future.” “It ain’t over til it’s over.” With Yogi, it never is.

Cooperstown Class of ’72 was more than “Yogi thinking funny,” said Garagiola, “and speaking what he thinks.” At 19, he braved Omaha Beach on D-Day. Back home, Berra’s aptly-named biographer notes, he became “baseball’s greatest catcher” — three-time MVP, 358 homers and the position’s most runs batted in — showing that “baseball is 90 percent mental. The other half is physical.”

“If you can’t imitate him,” said Yogi, “don’t copy him.” No one could copy baseball’s most lethal late-inning and bad-ball hitter. No. 8 also rolled 7 behind the plate. Once Berra fielded a bunt and tagged a hitter and a runner coming in to home, saying, “I just tagged everybody, including the ump.” Coach Bill Dickey, he said, had “learned me his experiences.”

IIn 1956, Yogi caught Don Larsen’s World Series perfect game, then spotted the team publicist. “Hi,” he said. “What’s new?” Old: Only Mickey Mantle tops his Series 39 RBI, batting right- and left-handed: to Berra, “amphibious.” Yogi leads in all-time Classic games (75), hits (71), played (14) and won (10). He is also the only manager to wave both a Yankees and Mets pennant. Barra calls him “the greatest winner in American professional sports.” “The Quiet Man,” meet Mr. Lucky.

Berra married Carmen in 1949. Son Dale made the bigs. Yogi’s bowling alley rolled 300; Yoo-hoo drink became an ooh-ah hit; AFLAC ads — Berra, in barber chair; barber and duck, agape — crashed TV’s Lourdes. At his Montclair University Museum and Learning Center, “I like to be there, teaching kids things like sportsmanship and work.” How far did Yogi go in high school? “Nine blocks,” Garagiola jibed. By any name, few lives have gone farther.

On July 18, 1999, the Yankees family hailed its past-year title, Berra catching Larsen’s pre-game toss. “Mr. Larsen,” pitcher David Cone said, recalling 1956, “are you going to jump into Yogi’s arms?” Don laughed. “You got it backward. He jumped into mine.” Berra then gave his glove to catcher Joe Girardi, who used it in Cone‘s perfect game vs. Montreal. Under “Midas Touch,” Webster’s should post Yogi’s mug.

Last September, Berra was introduced at The Stadium’s final game. The din volleyed, rose above the outfield, and crashed against the tiers. Yogi once said, “Always go to other people’s funerals. Otherwise they won’t come to yours.” Blessedly, baseball’s extraordinary Ordinary Man’s seems a long fly ball away.

Curt Smith is a former speechwriter to President George H.W. Bush. Mr. Smith writes twice monthly for GateHouse Media’s Messenger-Post Newspapers. E-mail him at curtsmith@netacc.net.

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